


Through A Darkened Looking Glass

by Ruby_Dragonryder, TheInkedFantasy (Ruby_Dragonryder)



Series: My Bendy AU's [2]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: And Henry is called Forge., Angst, Bendy needs a hug, But Joey sometimes makes me wish I did, Darkened Glass AU, Floangst, Floof, Gen, Good Guy Bendy (Bendy and the Ink Machine), I am proud of the story so far., I don't swear. XP, I made this AU myself! :D, I suck at tagging, Imprisonment, Ink!Henry, It just happened., Still need to design my Bendy and Henry for this., The Bendy's nickname is Mosaic., Time Loop, Toon!Bendy - Freeform, Will put in art as soon as I do., angel!henry, enjoy the story!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:28:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26464933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruby_Dragonryder/pseuds/Ruby_Dragonryder, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruby_Dragonryder/pseuds/TheInkedFantasy
Summary: Henry has always left himself reminders through the loops, using his looking glass to see his messages.But when he finds another looking glass with a blacked-out window, he finds that he's not the only one who writes on the walls in invisible ink.B̵̨̝̝̮͍̻̯̅͊́͗͊̀̽͝ê̴̤̞̜̜̒̚͝n̸̛͕̮̓̆̍͗̋ͅd̶̢̦̜̜̲̯̏͗̅̈́͘ÿ̴̻̠́̊̽͆̑̓̕͝͠͝͝ does too...
Relationships: Bendy & Henry Stein, Henry Stein/Linda Stein
Series: My Bendy AU's [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1978192
Comments: 46
Kudos: 72





	1. Where There Is Despair, There Will Always Be A Reason To Hope

**Author's Note:**

> This is just an AU I came up with randomly. I'm going to see how it plays out. I hope you enjoy!

Henry Stein stepped back into the studio with a sigh. 

“All right, Joey,” he grumbled unwillingly, forced to follow the script since day one, “let’s see if I can find what you wanted me to see.” 

And then the shackles around his limbs released, and he slumped to the floor, letting out a desperate sob. Why wouldn’t this ever end? He just wanted to be free… Was that so wrong?

He wasn’t sure how long he laid there, curled up in a ball with his back pressed up against the door, that horrible door that he hated more than one man should ever have to hate something, but it was long enough for him to run out of tears and just quietly shake. 

He paused when he thought he heard crying somewhere else, wiping away his tears―black as the ink staining the floorboards, figures he’d be unable to cry normal ones after all this―and getting up to search for the one making the forlorn noises, but after scouring the first level, he found no one. His only clue was that the crying seemed to get louder when he neared the ink machine. 

What astounded him was the looking glass he found in the trunk with the gear and the dry cell. He had his in his back pocket―don’t ask him how it fits, he doesn’t know―so what was this one doing here? Its window seemed to be inked over, and no matter how much he rubbed at it, the black would not come off. 

Shrugging off the oddness of it, Henry used it to look around and was startled to find a message in white ink on the floor in front of the switch. 

**_Don’t bring it up!_** it read. **_Leave it down there! Don’t turn it on! Please, don’t make us go through the agony again… Please, fight the choice…_**

He froze. The handwriting was cleaner than that on the walls, as if the writer had used a calligraphy pen instead of a brush like everyone else here, and the message seemed to mirror how he felt. He pulled out his own looking glass and read the message he himself had written. 

_There never was a choice._

He sighed. There really wasn’t one. But maybe… just maybe… 

He took out a pen and wrote underneath the white message in his golden ink, _But I’ll try and fight it for you._

He smiled. Hopefully that would make the person feel better and not despair as much. 

He turned to the hall, wondering if there were any other messages he could read. 

* * *

Pain. 

That was all he had known since being brought into this horrid world by Joey Drew. 

Endless agony and p̶̡̡̘̞̠̘̖͕̎a̸̰̖͖͚̣͚̟̪̮̚͝ͅĭ̷͍̠̲͚̬̥͉̬͛̓̔̉͊̚ņ̵̜̱̣̻͉̻̬̜͑̾̾̍͒̉̀͆̂̈́̕.

Trapped in this dark abyss of a body that he called a prison, Bendy looked through the eyes of a cutout. Using the sight of his prison caused him too much pain, and often showed things that he didn’t want to see. All those mangled bodies… 

He shook his head slightly to wave away the memory, not wanting to disturb the inky chains embedded in his hands and wrapped around his ankles, holding his limbs out to the sides so he was immobilized in this dark cell. Moving too much hurt more than anything else in his sorry existence, so he had to be careful. 

The Ink Machine room was his chosen viewpoint at the moment, ~~wanting~~ _needing_ to watch Henry turn it on and plunge them back into the fray again. He was always there at the end. The beginning was no different. 

It was honestly just conditioning at this point.

So imagine his surprise when he saw a message on the floor in shiny gold ink underneath where he had once controlled the ink to write one of his own. He had been desperate that loop, knowing that no one could hear him, but still just wanting it all to end. Having seen Henry’s message about there not being a choice, he pleaded with him to fight even though he knew it would be in vain. 

But there, on the floor, were the words, _But I’ll try and fight for you._

His heart soared. Henry had seen his message! Maybe that meant he could communicate with his creator after all these long loops of torture. Maybe neither of them had to be alone anymore.

Smiling a genuine smile for the first time in decades, Bendy switched between cutouts, searching for the old animator. Perhaps if he caught him at the right time, he could manipulate the ink and talk to him!

Maybe… Oh, the hope that rose in his chest at this new thought! He almost didn’t dare think it for the risk of jinxing himself, but he couldn't stop it from reaching into his mind. Maybe… Henry could help him. Maybe he could release him from the ink demon. 

Maybe… Maybe he could be finally _free._


	2. First Contact

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They're finally able to speak to one another, but a certain demon interrupts the happy reunion. 
> 
> Good thing Henry's resolve has been strengthened. 
> 
> He _will_ save Bendy, even if he has to give up his own life to do it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, first off, no, Henry is not dying, you don't have to yell at me in the comments, I wouldn't kill him and even if I did, I would have said major character death in the warnings. It's just a summary thing and showing Henry's dedication. 
> 
> Second, this will probably turn into drabbles as only a little bit of the game is needed for this AU. Most of this AU is about _after_ the game, in between the lines. Maybe. I might do a couple of more loops for fun. Depends on what you guys want. 
> 
> This does mean that I will be taking requests, so if you want to see a certain character or something after the main story arc is over, I will totally do how Forge (Henry) and Mosaic (Bendy) react. I just need to do a few things first, but feel free to comment your preferences and I'll keep a list (and probably write them in advance before I even finish the main story because this story is SUPER fun to write ^^) and post them once they're finished. 
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

Henry walked up next to his desk, using the darkened glass to look around for messages. It was funny, to see the words he wrote repeated, answered, or rejected. 

For example, his message in the Boris lab, _She’s heartless,_ was answered with, **_No,_ ** **_he_ ** **_is._ ** He chuckled bitterly at that one. 

He looked at his desk, at the message, _He was born here_ , and smiled softly. Bendy had been his greatest creation. It was a real shame that he couldn’t love Bendy the way he was meant to be loved here. He was always running from him, always fighting to survive. So sad. 

Pulling up the darkened glass, as he had dubbed the blacked-out looking glass, he saw a message: **_Born to the best creator I could ever ask for._ **

Henry smiled, warmth filling his heart. Bendy _did_ love him. He didn’t think he was a traitor! If only he could help him… 

His train of thought was interrupted by the words on the desk changing to **_Can you… read this?_ **

He nearly bolted, using all of his self-control to stay put and reply with a shaky, “Yes…” 

**_You… You can! Oh boy, you don’t know how long I’ve waited for this! I… wish I could hug you right now, but I’m kinda stuck. Heh._ **

His shock wearing off, Henry approached the desk with curiosity. “Are you… Bendy?”

 **_Yes! I am! And you would not believe how relieved I am to finally talk to you after all these years. I… I kind of missed you, Henry. A lot._ **

Henry sat down in the chair, running his fingers through his hair. “How… How are you talking to me? Where are you?” 

**_It’s… a long story. I can manipulate ink outside my body, but I’m still trapped. If I could, I’d come to you now. I really wish I could. I’ve... I've been alone for so long…_ **

“Bendy, you didn’t answer my second question,” Henry said firmly. “How can I help you if I don’t even know where you are?” 

Bendy didn’t reply for a moment, and Henry was afraid he had upset the little demon when the writing finally changed again. 

**_You… want to help me? Really?_ **

He nodded. 

**_Oh, thank you! Thank you! Thank you, Henry! You don’t know how much that means to me!_ **

Henry was shocked. To think that so little an action as offering help would elicit such a joyous and grateful reaction from the toon was honestly worrying. Where the heck was he for him to react like this?! 

“Um… You’re welcome?” Henry said finally. “But buddy, you still haven’t told me where you are.” 

**_Right. I’m_ **

Bendy didn’t continue his message for another five or so minutes, worrying Henry. He was about to call his name when the writing changed. 

**_I’m sorry, but he won’t let me tell you. Trying… it was agony. He figured out what I was doing. I can’t talk to you right now, or he might try to hurt you. I promise to try and talk to you later! Please, don’t give up!_ **

“Wait, Bendy, who is this _he_ you’re talking about?! How is he hurting you?! Bendy, please―” Henry pleaded, but the message reverted back to the original, leaving Henry alone again. 

So, knowing that Bendy wasn’t coming back anytime soon, Henry thought over what the demon had said. He was trapped somewhere, obviously with some sort of warden keeping him from talking to or going to Henry for help. His only form of communication were these invisible messages only able to be seen using the darkened glass. But where could he be? He wasn’t anywhere Henry had gone, or he would have seen him. He wasn’t near the inside of a locked door, or he would have heard him. 

But the crying from earlier… He had never heard that before… 

He sighed and got up. Maybe moving forward would give him more answers. 

So the hope of finally being able to hold his dancing demon close to him for real buoyed him up as he gathered the items for the ritual and started up the machine, hopefully for the last time.

* * *

Bendy searched the first floor, knowing he had to be there. He wasn’t in the animation department, the hallways, the little theatre, the Boris room― _sorry, old friend_ ―or the power switch room, so where―

There! At his old desk! Staring fondly at his original design. Oh, what Bendy wouldn’t give to go back to that day, when he was still safe in Henry’s hands. But alas, neither of them could turn back the clock. Only Drew could do that. 

Bendy nearly cried tears of happiness when Henry said yes to being able to read his message. Oh, how long he had ~~waited~~ ~~hoped~~ _dreamed_ of this day! And when he offered to help him escape, he had had to take a minute to compose himself so he didn’t just make a mass of ink representing his happiness and relief and hope all over the desk. That would have been embarrassing. 

But then he tried to tell Henry where he was, and the pain came. He could hear the ink demon snarling at him as the chains attached to him were pulled taught, digging into his hands and ankles and causing him to scream. The demon didn’t let up for what felt like an eternity before the chains were let loose again, giving Bendy sweet relief as he sobbed from the agony. 

"̵D̶o̷n̵'̴t̸ ̴e̸v̵e̴n̸ ̵t̴h̸i̶n̵k̵ ̷a̴b̴o̵u̴t̵ ̷i̶t̴,̷ ̶i̵m̶p̵,̷"̵ the demon hissed in his non-existant ear. "̴I̸ ̴c̶a̴n̸ ̴g̴i̴v̴e̶ ̸y̷o̶u̷ ̴p̶a̶i̸n̷ ̸l̵i̶k̶e̶ ̷y̵o̷u̶ ̸c̸a̴n̴'̸t̷ ̵i̶m̷a̸g̴i̷n̸e̷.̶ ̶K̶e̶e̶p̴ ̴r̶e̴b̵e̸l̷l̴i̷n̷g̵ ̶l̷i̷k̵e̴ ̶t̵h̵a̸t̶,̶ ̴a̶n̷d̴ ̵I̷'̵l̵l̷ ̵p̶u̸l̶l̴ ̸t̶h̸e̶ ̵c̸h̶a̴i̸n̸s̴ ̶t̸i̶g̴h̸t̶ ̵u̶n̷t̴i̷l̷ ̵y̵o̶u̸ ̵p̷a̵s̷s̵ ̸o̸u̸t̴,̶ ̵g̶o̸t̴ ̶i̶t̵?̷"̷

He mumbled under his breath and the demon drew nearer. 

"̶W̷h̴a̸t̴ ̵w̶a̵s̴ ̸t̸h̵a̴t̴?̸"̸ the demon asked. 

“I said, I’d rather sit here in pain for the chance of freedom than bend to your will, demon!” Bendy snapped. 

The demon pulled the chains once more, relishing the screams of agony that came from his captive before letting them loose and allowing Bendy to breathe once more, albeit shakily. 

"̷W̶e̴l̵l̵,̷ ̶g̵u̸e̵s̶s̷ ̴w̶h̴a̶t̸,̴ ̸h̴o̵t̶s̷h̷o̷t̷,̸ ̶i̶f̴ ̴h̶u̴r̴t̸i̶n̶g̸ ̸y̴o̶u̸ ̷d̵o̷e̷s̶n̶'̵t̸ ̷w̷o̷r̶k̷,̵ ̶I̸ ̷c̴o̷u̴l̸d̶ ̶a̸l̵w̵a̷y̶s̷ ̸h̴u̷r̵t̷ ̵h̵i̵m̷.̷.̵.̴ ̷H̴m̷.̸.̶.̶ ̸I̵ ̷w̷o̷n̴d̶e̷r̴ ̶h̶o̴w̴ ̴y̶o̴u̸'̷d̷ ̸r̷e̵a̴c̸t̸ ̵i̵f̶ ̶I̶ ̸m̸a̴d̵e̴ ̸y̷o̶u̷ ̶w̸a̶t̸c̶h̴ ̶a̵s̶ ̶I̸ ̵d̵i̵s̷m̷e̸m̴b̷e̵r̸e̸d̸ ̷h̷i̶m̴.̵.̴.̶"̴ the demon said with a malicious grin. 

“W-what? N-no! Don’t hurt him!” Bendy pleaded, straining against the chains despite the pain, feeling the need to get to Henry, to protect his creator from the demon. “Please, I’ll do anything! Just don’t hurt him!” 

"̴T̸h̶e̷n̸ ̷Ḃ̷̬̲̮̠̬̣̳͕̭͌͑̈́̌͆̔̓̔͊E̴̙͇̽͌̌̐̓͆̌Ḩ̶̡̧̼̳̙͚͚̩̹̭̫͉̮͖͍͒̅̍̈́̌̇̉̉̏̇́͋͊͛͜͠A̶̛͎̼͛͊̾̅̇̕͝͠͝V̴̘̤̥̱̞̻͓͉͎̝͖̇͒͗̄͊̕͝ͅͅĘ̶̩̜̙͚̮̤͎͔͚̘͉̳̫̥́̓͊̍̐̔,̷"̵ the demon roared before leaving Bendy alone again. 

Bendy cried buckets of inky tears as he wrote a message to Henry saying he had to go. He had to force himself to tell Henry that if he didn’t stop talking to him, the ink demon would hurt him, for fear of it actually happening had embedded itself in his heart. 

Reverting the message back to what he had originally written and leaving Henry with his thoughts, Bendy wished he could curl up in a ball so he could at least nurse his wounds, make things hurt a little less, but he couldn’t. He hadn’t been able to for years. The demon would never allow him even that small mercy. 

So instead he cried, sobbing oceans of tears for the loss of his one chance, his _one chance_ at _freedom_ , his one chance to be with his _creator_ , to have Henry hold him and tell him everything was all right and that he didn’t have to be afraid anymore because Henry had him and he would make everything better because _he was Henry_ , and Henry always made _everything_ better. If Bendy remembered anything from his time on the page, it was that Henry always made things better and he made sure that none of the cartoons were sad and that there was always a happy ending. 

Bendy wasn’t sure if there would ever be a happy ending to his story now. 

Oh, if only the demon toon knew that at this very moment, Henry was searching for a way to set him free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well? What did you think? Was Ink Demon evil enough? I thought he did a pretty good job acting today.  
> ID: "T̴h̴a̸n̴k̵ ̸y̷o̴u̴,̵ ̶F̷a̸n̵t̷a̶s̶y̶.̶"  
> Forge: "No! Don't encourage him! He hurt Bendy!"  
> Mosaic: "Yeah!"  
> Oh shut your yaps. He will get his comeuppance. In the meantime, comment on what you thought down below. Do you have any favorite secret messages from Henry you want me to spotlight and have Bendy react to? I am totally open for requests!  
> Toodles! And thanks for reading!


	3. The Threat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Demon has a few things to say to our good friend Henry...
> 
> A few _threats..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter's a tad short, but it's only a precursor to what comes on the morrow. So enjoy! And I hope you love _The Threat._  
>  And don't forget to read the end notes, I have something important to say.

Henry set up the ritual, turned on the machine, and trudged back to the ink machine room to be nearly grabbed by the demon and then released before being plunged back into the dark nightmarish studio again. This time, however, he had incentive. He had his devil darling to look for, not to mention rescue. This time, he had a purpose. 

He was going to get both of them out. 

Entering the hallway containing the ink machine, he braced himself. No matter how many times he went through this―how many was that, he had lost count ages ago―he could never shake off the terror he felt when facing the monster of the studio, the creature that Joey made and forced him to fight. He had tried reasoning with it before, but only ended up with his heart torn out of his―

Henry shook his head. _Dang it, Henry!_ he scolded himself. _You promised yourself you wouldn’t think about that!_

He had died so many times in so many ways, he was convinced he knew every painful and agonizing way there was to die. All that pain… He didn’t want to think about that. 

Not after the last time he did. 

Steeling himself, he stepped into view of the machine, forcing himself to keep moving. When the demon jumped up, he nearly had a heart attack when the glove grasped the front of his shirt. 

"̷D̴o̶n̵'̷t̶ ̶s̵t̴r̴a̴y̷ ̴t̴o̶o̵ ̵f̷a̴r̸,̷ ̴H̴e̴n̴r̴y̵.̵.̵.̶"̶ the demon grinned as he whispered in Henry’s ear. "̴T̵h̵e̸ ̵c̸h̷a̶i̴n̶s̴ ̵s̴t̵i̷l̵l̷ ̴h̷o̵l̴d̴ ̷y̵o̷u̷ ̴t̵o̷ ̷t̷h̴e̸ ̵s̵t̷o̷r̴y̸.̵.̸.̸ ̶A̶n̵d̴ ̶i̶f̵ ̴y̷o̶u̵'̸r̸e̸ ̸n̶o̶t̴ ̵c̴a̴r̸e̶f̷u̴l̶,̴ ̷B̴e̸n̵d̵y̶ ̶m̷i̸g̵h̶t̸ ̸f̶a̸c̶e̷ ̶t̸h̵e̶ ̷c̴o̸n̴s̷e̸q̶u̵e̴n̵c̷e̶s̸ ̶o̶f̷ ̵y̸o̴u̵r̵ ̷d̸i̷s̶o̵b̶e̸d̶i̷e̷n̶c̵e̸ ̸t̸o̷o̷.̵.̵.̶ ̶W̸e̴ ̶w̷o̴u̶l̸d̵n̶'̴t̵ ̴w̷a̴n̵t̷ ̶t̷h̵a̸t̵,̸ ̶n̸o̵w̸ ̴w̴o̵u̵l̷d̵ ̴w̷e̵?̷"̸

Henry froze. “You… You have…” 

"̸Y̵e̸s̴,̵ ̷I̶ ̷h̴a̸v̶e̵ ̶t̵h̷e̴ ̴l̴i̷t̵t̵l̶e̵ ̷i̵m̶p̶,̴ ̷s̷o̴m̵e̶w̷h̴e̵r̴e̵ ̷y̵o̸u̴ ̴w̷i̶l̴l̸ ̵n̴e̸v̸e̷r̸ ̷f̷i̸n̴d̵ ̸h̴i̵m̵,̴ ̶a̷n̸d̵ ̵I̵ ̷h̴a̶v̵e̷ ̴c̶o̷n̶t̸r̸o̴l̴ ̷o̶v̶e̷r̸ ̶h̴i̷s̴ ̸f̷a̵t̵e̷.̷ ̷K̷e̵e̴p̴ ̷r̶e̶b̶e̷l̷l̸i̵n̵g̵ ̵a̴g̸a̷i̶n̴s̴t̶ ̸t̵h̴e̶ ̶D̷i̵r̴e̸c̸t̴o̷r̶,̸ ̵a̸n̴d̷ ̵I̴ ̵w̶i̵l̸l̵ ̸c̶a̶u̸s̸e̵ ̷y̸o̴u̵ ̶b̵o̶t̶h̷ ̸u̶n̵i̸m̶a̷g̴i̵n̴a̸b̵l̶e̶ ̷p̶a̷i̵n̸,̷ ̸g̴o̵t̷ ̷i̶t̵?̷"̷

Henry nodded mutely, shaking. The Ink Demon had Bendy! That’s why he could never find him! The monster was hiding his toon from him. Perhaps if he―

"̸I̶ ̸k̶n̴o̵w̷ ̵w̸h̴a̶t̷ ̷y̶o̷u̴'̵r̵e̸ ̵t̵h̷i̵n̴k̴i̵n̴g̶,̷ ̶H̷e̶n̶r̴y̴y̴y̷y̷y̸.̶.̵.̸" the demon hissed, making Henry’s eyes widen in fear. 

“Y-you do?” he asked shakily. 

"̶Y̸o̷u̷ ̸t̶h̶i̵n̸k̴ ̷t̶h̵a̶t̶ ̴i̷f̸ ̸y̷o̴u̴ ̸j̷u̷s̶t̷ ̴p̵l̷a̷y̶ ̷a̴l̷o̴n̴g̷,̴ ̸y̷o̶u̴'̸l̶l̶ ̷j̵u̷s̷t̶ ̷w̶a̴i̴t̸ ̸i̵t̷ ̶o̶u̸t̶ ̶a̵n̵d̵ ̶t̸h̷e̵n̷ ̵f̸i̴n̸d̴ ̵a̸n̶d̸ ̵r̸e̶s̶c̴u̸e̵ ̶y̸o̷u̷r̴ ̶l̸i̶t̵t̶l̴e̵ ̵d̸e̸v̶i̶l̴ ̸d̴a̷r̸l̸i̴n̴g̷,̶ ̶b̷u̴t̴ ̸y̵o̴u̴ ̶d̶o̵n̶'̴t̷ ̷g̷e̸t̴ ̷i̷t̴.̴.̸.̴ ̶I̴ ̶c̵o̵n̸t̸r̸o̶l̷ ̶b̵o̷t̵h̸ ̷o̴f̸ ̴y̸o̸u̴ ̵h̶e̷r̷e̷.̷ ̸T̸h̷i̸s̶ ̸i̵s̸ ̶M̴Y̷ ̶s̴t̴o̷r̸y̴,̸ ̴t̷h̸e̸ ̸s̵t̶o̸r̶y̷ ̴m̵y̶ ̸c̴r̴e̸a̴t̴o̷r̶ ̸g̸a̵v̸e̵ ̸m̵e̶,̶ ̴a̸n̴d̶ ̸h̷e̵ ̵t̶o̶l̸d̶ ̸m̵e̴ ̴y̷o̸u̷ ̸t̷w̷o̸ ̴w̴e̶r̴e̷ ̶t̴o̸ ̸b̸e̷ ̴m̶a̴d̶e̶ ̶ **S̷ ̷U̷ ̵F̶ ̴F̸ ̷E̵ ̵R̷** ,̷ ̵a̷n̴d̵ ̶I̷ ̴i̷n̶t̴e̸n̸d̸ ̵t̶o̷ ̸d̴o̶ ̶a̸s̸ ̴m̶y̴ ̶m̸a̶s̶t̵e̶r̴ ̸c̷o̸m̶m̶a̴n̵d̵s̸.̵ ̶F̵i̴g̶h̶t̷ ̸t̸o̴o̸ ̷m̴u̵c̴h̶,̴ ̵a̵n̴d̴ ̵I̷'̴l̷l̶ ̵m̸a̸k̴e̷ ̸s̴u̸r̷e̸ ̴y̸o̴u̵ ̴c̷a̶n̵ ̵n̸e̶v̸e̷r̸ ̴t̶a̶l̵k̸ ̵t̶o̶ ̵t̸h̶a̷t̵ ̸i̶m̷p̶ ̶a̷g̸a̸i̷n̶,̷ ̵g̷o̷t̴ ̸i̸t̷?̶"̶

Henry’s heart sunk. The demon did know, and his message was dreadfully clear. Oh, Joey Drew, why did you hate him so? What did he ever do to deserve this torture? All he wanted was his little demon, to be able to be with him so neither of them would have to be alone anymore, to let Bendy know that he loved him and that he didn’t mean to leave him here with Joey for him to be dragged off the page into this sorry existence--was that really so wrong? Was it wrong for a father to want to be with his child?

"̴W̶h̴a̴t̶?̵ ̵W̵h̵a̷t̸ ̶a̸r̷e̵ ̸y̶o̴u̸ ̵d̴o̴i̸n̸g̷?̴ ̷H̵o̴w̴ ̸a̵r̸e̶ ̴y̵o̴u̶―̶S̶t̴o̵p̴ ̵i̸t̵,̷ ̶y̷o̴u̴ ̶i̷m̷p̶u̷d̴e̸n̶t̴ ̵w̵h̶e̶l̵p̴,̴ ̵o̷r̸ ̵I̸'̶l̷l̶ ̵t̴a̸k̴e̵ ̵h̸i̵s̵ ̸h̵e̷a̷d̷ ̷o̸f̶f̴!̸"̸

Henry was shoved to the floor as the demon clutched at its head, snarling at some unseen force. It was only by chance that Henry looked down and saw the message on the floor under the darkened glass that he had dropped: 

**_Run! Run, Henry! I can only hold him for so long! Whatever you do, don’t let him catch you!!_ **

Nodding, Henry grabbed the darkened glass and shoved it in his back pocket, rushing for the exit and the one spot that would allow him to escape the demon’s clutches. 

"̸I̶'̴L̵L̴ ̶F̷I̸N̴D̷ ̸Y̶O̵U̷!̸"̵ screamed the demon’s voice at his back. ̸͇͠"̷I̸'̶L̶L̶ ̴F̸I̸N̷D̵ ̴Y̴O̵U̸,̶ ̷H̸E̵N̶R̶Y̴,̵ ̷A̴N̸D̵ ̶I̵'̷L̷L̷ ̸M̶A̵K̵E̴ ̸Y̷O̶U̵ ̶P̷A̴Y̴!̶ ̷Y̵O̸U̸ ̸W̸I̴L̸L̶ ̷B̷O̸T̷H̸ ̷P̴A̷Y̷ ̴F̷O̴R̶ ̸T̷H̴I̷S̵,̴ ̷S̸T̶A̵R̶T̷I̷N̴G̷ ̴W̵I̷T̸H̶ ̵Y̵O̷U̸R̷ ̴L̶I̴T̵T̵L̷E̸ ̶D̶E̴V̸I̵L̸ ̵D̵A̸R̶L̵I̵N̶G̶!̵ ̷I̴ ̴H̸O̷P̴E̸ ̵Y̶O̵U̴'̶R̶E̶ ̴H̷A̴P̷P̴Y̷ ̸W̵I̸T̷H̸ ̵Y̵O̷U̵R̸S̴E̵L̵F̷,̷ ̸F̶O̵R̶ ̴H̶E̸ ̶I̷S̷ ̸G̶O̷I̶N̵G̷ ̶T̴O̸ ̸F̸E̴E̵L̶ ̶I̴N̴D̶E̴S̵C̵R̵I̷B̷A̶B̵L̵E̷ ̵A̵G̷O̶N̷Y̷!̵"̴

**̷͓̑"̶̧̾B̶̻̔Ę̸͠C̶̯̓Ä̵͍U̸͔̿S̷̡̔Ḙ̷̛ ̴̯̕Ȏ̵ͅF̴̮̽ ̴̱̈** **_Y̸̬̘̯̜̱̪̻̼͚̩̎̈̏͑̍̌͝͠͠͠Ŏ̶̡̭̫̝͍̥̈̈́͑̓͜͝Ṷ̷̺̖̦̔̾̔͐͊_ ** **!̷̹̀"̷̯̋**

Tears streaking down his cheeks, Henry reached for the door, knowing it was in vain, and fell, deep down into the studio. He stumbled in a daze, unable to see anything past his blurry vision, until he finally collapsed on the pentagram, sobbing at the thought of Bendy being hurt because of his actions as he waited for the sweet release of unconsciousness to take him away, desperately hoping he wouldn’t dream this time. 

Of course, it was just his luck that he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All right, so imagine you're me.  
> You get on in the morning, feeling kind of down for reasons I won't explain, and find that in the TWO DAYS you have posted a little more than TWO THOUSAND words, you have already gotten FOURTEEN KUDOS!!! FOURTEEN!!!!  
> You feel wonderful because PEOPLE LIKE YOUR STORY, and that feeling gets even better when you read your comments to find that PEOPLE ARE ACTUALLY COMMENTING ON YOUR STORY WHAT--  
> And it's more than just "wonderful story, Fantasy," it's ideas and feelings and it's just amazing!  
> Heck, a user called thedemonsurfer actually came up with the cutest father-son bonding thing of "secret tic-tac-toe," and I cannot wait to write that when we get to that part in the game! ^^
> 
> What I'm trying to say is, speak up. I do read all your comments and I wish that I could stick them all up on my wall because they're so amazing and I feel amazing knowing that you like the story and are willing to tell me that.  
> And thank you to those who do comment. You make my day and give me the motivation to keep posting!
> 
> When I posted this story, I meant for it to be a bit of a one-shot with drabbles afterward, but I accidentally posted it too soon. I shrugged it off and went with it, thinking, _oh, it won't matter, no one will look at this anyway, I can just edit it later,_ not expecting for you guys to actually enjoy the story of Forge and Mosaic. Now, I am in awe of how many who have enjoyed it thus far and said something about it, and I was excited to sit down and write this next bit, to give you the story you all so justly deserve, so thank you. Thank you for reading, and thank you for enjoying my story enough to say something. It means a lot not just to me, but to all writers. We appreciate you, every one. 
> 
> For those who commented your suggestions last chapter, don't worry, your ideas are on my list. I just kinda like to keep it in canon order unless I get one that's behind the chapter of the game we're on. You will see your suggestions soon! ^^D
> 
> So please, comment your feelings, your suggestions, and your ideas. Who knows? You might come up with something that becomes Darkened Glass canon!  
> Toodles!
> 
> _\- Fantasy_
> 
> P.S. Please tell me if you're having trouble reading the Ink Demon's words. I'm trying a new glitch translator and I will absolutely tone it down and fix it for this chapter if you guys can't read it. It's meant to be read, after all. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. I'll Dream A Dream To Dream Us Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I'll dream a dream to dream us out,  
>  A dream to rock the world about,  
>  A dream to set us free.  
>  But when that fabled exit you do find  
>  I must ask you, oh so kind,  
>  Will you come back and remember me?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! I'm back and definitely not dead! Sorry this took so long, but this one is definitely longer and I spent most of the weekend worldbuilding so that we actually have a world to read about. Expect more characters soon. 
> 
> In the meantime, enjoy this chapter of Through A Darkened Looking Glass.

Bendy silently sobbed, waiting for the blissful release of unconsciousness to finally take him away from the pain. The demon had pulled the chains taut for at least half an hour, but it felt like the agony would never ever end. At least it was worth it to get the demon to let go of Henry. That made all the pain into something meaningful. 

As his eyes slid slowly closed, he watched the sight of his prison tear apart lost ones. The demon knew how much he hated to use its sense of sight and how much physical pain it caused him to do so, so it relished the chance to make him suffer even more than usual. 

Bendy sighed. Hopefully, his dreams would be nice. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had a nice dream, a happy dream. It might have been long before he came to this twisted world even. No, perhaps it was better to wish for no dreams. Just relief from the pain. 

Letting unconsciousness finally take him away from his aching body, he awoke in a dream. But he wasn’t sure it was a dream, for he was still chained up like in the real world. 

_Please don’t let this be a nightmare,_ he pleaded silently. _Please don’t let this be one of those where I have to watch Henry be killed over and over again. Please, to anyone who is listening, don’t make me go through that again._

“Bendy?” came a voice from his left. A very familiar voice. 

Hesitantly, Bendy turned to the voice, shaking. _Please let it be him. Please let it be him! To any angel above listening, please let me have this small mercy._

There he was. Henry Oliver Stein in the flesh was standing nearby, staring at him in horror. 

“Bendy, what… Who…” Henry said sorrowfully as he approached the toon, taking in Bendy’s restraints with the practiced eye of an animator. 

“I… I can’t tell you…” Bendy admitted. “He’ll hurt you… Besides, this is just a dream. It’s not real, and it never could be. Not after what the demon said to you.” 

“But if this is a dream, then is it mine, or yours?” Henry asked. “Because I just collapsed on a pentagram and passed out, so…” 

“You _what_?!” Bendy yelped, pulling on his chains and wincing. “Henry, that’s bad! You can’t just pass out on pentagrams! You’ll… You’ll… You’ll turn into an ink monster or something! The ink might try to take you! You have to be careful--” 

“Bendy, you realize that the reason I come back after I die is that there is ink in my blood, right?” Henry checked. 

Bendy stared at him. “W-what? But… But how?! I was watching so carefully, how did you--” 

Henry held a finger to the toon’s lips, silencing him. “Buddy, I had ink put in me before I ever stepped foot in this death trap. Joey… He called me to his house and shot me with a gun. I was powerless to stop him as he injected ink into my blood so he could have control over me. The ink burned me from the inside out, causing unbearable agony, but it was nothing compared to the feeling of chains wrapped around my soul when he threw me into the studio and controlled my every movement for the first twenty loops or so, making me go through the motions of the story. It was so… violating. I soon began to avoid rebelling because whenever I did, he’d take control for the rest of the loop. It was horrible. I thought this torture would be my punishment for leaving the studio, for leaving him, and that this would be my eternity for the rest of forever and that I would never know happiness or hope again.

“But… now I found you, and I know you’re alive, and that makes everything a little better. I… I wasn’t sure my little creation even existed here.” 

Bendy leaned into Henry’s hand as it moved from his lips to his cheek, relishing the simple contact like it was a ray of sunlight after seemingly endless night, making Henry chuckle weakly. 

“Let’s get you out of these chains, buddy,” Henry said softly, and Bendy perked up at the prospect of freedom. 

The demon sat patiently and braced himself as the animator swung the ax into the chains holding him up. He nearly let out a sob of happiness when the first chain, the one around his left ankle, gave way after three very painful strikes tugging on the chains. He could move it again--albeit shakily for it had been years since he had had to walk--but the important thing was that the limb was _his_ again. A few more strikes and his right leg was out as well, then his right arm, and finally his left arm. He nearly fell to the ground, but strong arms wrapped around his numb body, clutching him to Henry’s chest where he could hear the steady thump of the animator’s heart. Tears of gratitude streamed down his face as he tried to hold Henry’s shirt in his weak fists to assure himself that this was real, that he didn’t have to wake up, that he could stay here forever in this dream with Henry. 

Henry’s heart clenched as he listened to the soft but repetitive, “Th-thank you, th-thank you,” the demon kept mumbling into his chest. How long had he been trapped like that?

“It’s okay, Bendy,” Henry whispered as he sat down with the toon in his arms. “You don’t have to go back to that. Not right now, anyway, and when we wake up, I’ll find a way to get you out for real.” 

Bendy smiled through his tears, cuddling closer to the warmth of his creator. Here, he felt safe. Henry’s hands were gnarled and a little shaky, but gentle and soft, holding him carefully and rubbing the fur between his four horns as the soothing baritone timbre of Henry’s voice sang quiet melodies above him in another language he didn’t know. Yes, this was where he wanted to be for all eternity: safe in Henry’s arms, away from the chains and pain that the Ink Demon brought with him. If this was what heaven was like, he was willing to give up being a demon to go there. This was definitely worth it. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking. _Fur? Bendy doesn’t have fur! And what do you mean, four horns?! Bendy has two!_ And to that I say, you assume that this is your ordinary on-model Bendy. If that had been the case, then Bendy would not have been chained up and allowed to be tortured by the ink demon, instead paraded about and treated like a king. No, this Bendy was different. 

This Bendy looked more like a demon, to begin with. He had two sets of horns, and instead of the nice shiny dancing shoes he had in the shows, he had three-clawed feet like a prehistoric beast. A long spaded tail was draped over Henry’s arm, and his fists were tipped with white claws. White lines went up the length of his lower arms, legs, and tail in sporadic patterns, scars given to him by his tormentors that made his fur look almost like some sort of art. The only true resemblances to the original character in the question of aesthetic were his coloring, his piecut eyes, his white gloves―which had two holes going straight through them where the buttons should be, a scar from where the chains had held him for so long that would never fade―and the white bowtie just beneath his chin, though his wasn’t as floppy as the true Bendy’s. 

You _could_ say that he wasn’t truly Bendy at all, only a distorted copy, but he didn’t like to think that. It was too close to what Joey and the demon always said about him. 

“Heh. You’re different from the last time I drew you,” Henry said, causing Bendy to freeze. 

“Is… Is that bad?” Bendy asked hesitantly, looking up at Henry. “B-because if it is, I can fix it! I’ll do better, Henry, please, just don’t send me away, please, I’ll do anything―” 

“No, it’s not bad,” Henry said reassuringly, interrupting the toon’s frantic rambling. “It means you’ve grown. Besides, I rather like this design. It’s not Joey’s, and it’s not my original, which means it’s just… you.”

“Just me?” the toon repeated. 

He nodded. “Since you’re not Joey’s and you’re not exactly mine and you’re just you, I suppose that means you need a new name. A name that is all yours.” 

“All… mine?” he asked hopefully, his voice so full of longing it was heartbreaking. He had never had anything before, let alone something that was all his and no one else’s. 

“All yours. Hm… Bob… Willy… Aaron… Hector… No, none of those sound right. What should we call you?” Henry looked down at the toon in his arms, and spotted the scars running up his arms. They were… oddly beautiful. “Mosaic…” Henry mumbled. “They look like a mosaic…”

“I like that,” the demon decided. 

“What?” Henry asked, startled out of his train of thought. “What do you like, little one?” 

“Mosaic. It’s nice. Can I have that as my name?” the toon asked. 

“If you want. Mosaic is a type of art in which you use small irregular objects to create a picture. Kind of like your scars. They look like mosaics,” Henry explained. 

“Then maybe they aren’t bad, since you find them pretty. Maybe… Maybe they’re just who I am now. Mosaic the toon.” 

Henry chuckled. “All right, Mosaic. Why not Mosaic the demon?”

“I don’t like demons. They’re mean. And they can’t go to heaven.” 

“Why do you want to go to heaven, bud?” 

“Because you’re an angel that God sent to rescue us, and I want to go with you… D-Dad…” 

Henry was astounded. Not only did Ben--no, _Mosaic_ think he was an _angel_ , but he had called him _Dad_. It… It was a wonderful feeling, to know that the toon held him in such high regard. 

“You… You think I’m an angel?” Henry asked softly. 

“Yeah! There’s a halo above your head!” 

Surprised by this exclamation but humoring his ~~son~~ toon, he felt above his head. His heart skipped a beat as his fingers touched smooth metal. 

“What in the world…?” he muttered as he grabbed it and held it where both he and Mosaic could study it. 

The heavenly metal was warm and gave off a soft golden glow, the same color as the ink Henry used for his messages. Henry let it go as Mosaic took it with careful hands, the toon examining it with awe in his eyes. 

“It… It really does feel like you, Da--I mean, Henry,” he said as he leaned into Henry, hugging the metal hoop close to his chest. “It has that same sense of safety and light and love and hope that I get from being here with you. I knew it was proof you were an angel!”

“Okay, first off young man, you are not to call me Henry if you want to call me something else,” Henry said kindly as he poked Mosaic’s belly and made him giggle. “You are to call me whatever you wish.” 

“I could call you… Dad?” Mosaic asked hopefully. 

He nodded. “Do you… want to call me Dad?” Henry asked, his spirits rising at the thought.

A wide but shaky grin spread across Mosaic’s face as he nodded excitedly. “Of course! I want you to be my dad and hold me and protect me and play games with me and… and love me…” He watched Henry warily after that declaration. “B-but if you d-don’t want to, I-I understand…” 

“Oh, Mosaic, I would love to,” Henry said, pulling Mosaic closer to him. “I want nothing more than for you to feel safe with me and to want to be held by me and to play games and just be my little Mosaic. It’s all I want. If I can’t have freedom, I at least want to have you with me, safe and sound and happy.” 

Mosaic’s face lit up. “Really?!” he asked longingly. 

Henry nodded. “I will, as long as you tell me how long you’ve seen this halo, and why I can’t see it myself in the real world.” 

“It’s always been there. I guess it’s a side effect of the ink in you? I’m surprised you’ve never seen it… I mean, even the demon can see it…” Mosaic cut himself off, watching Henry fearfully. 

“How… How would you know that?” Henry asked carefully. 

“I… I can’t tell you… He’ll hurt you… I can’t… He’ll make me watch as he does it… I don’t want to watch you get dismembered I’m sorry!” Mosaic began sobbing, clinging to Henry’s vest. 

“Mosaic, what do you mean? How could he make you watch? That isn’t possible, unless…” Wheels whirred in Henry’s mind as he started trying to put the clues together. “You’re not trapped in _the studio_ , you’re trapped in _the demon_ …” 

Mosaic trembled. “You can’t let him know you know,” he pleaded. “He said I wasn’t allowed to tell you or he’d hurt us both! I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…” 

“Shh… I’m glad you told me here, where he can’t hurt you,” Henry said, holding the shaking Mosaic close to his heart to try and soothe him. “Now I can figure out how to save you, how to make this _real_.” 

Mosaic leaned into Henry’s chest and listened to his heartbeat, trying to get his breathing rhythm to match that of Henry’s heart. It worked, but then something else changed. His body started to fade. 

The dream was ending. 

He was waking up. 

“No!” he cried, clutching at his father tightly as the fading worsened. “I don’t want to go! Don’t make me go back, please! This is the closest I’ve ever been to having you, don’t make me go back to the demon again! I want to stay here with you, Dad! Please! Please, let me stay!” 

“I don’t really have a choice in the matter, kiddo,” Henry lamented, “but I promise we’ll see each other again, whether in the real world or here again in our dreams. I love you, Mosaic. Don’t ever forget it. And I’m sorry I―”

Mosaic didn’t hear the end of the sentence as he was jolted back to reality. He could feel the tears on his cheeks, but they weren’t really sad tears, so he didn’t mind that he could no longer wipe them away as he had in the dream. 

"̶O̸h̸!̷ ̶Y̵o̸u̷'̶r̵e̵ ̴u̵p̸!̵ ̵D̵i̵d̸ ̷y̸o̶u̷ ̸h̵a̸v̸e̵ ̶a̵ ̶n̴i̷c̵e̶ ̴n̴i̵g̵h̶t̶m̸a̶r̸e̴?̸"̸ the demon sneered. 

Mosaic considered that. “Yeah… It was interesting…” was all he said as he savored the memories of being with his creator. Waiting for Henry to come up with a plan didn’t seem so bad now that he had these to look back on. 

Soon, he knew they would be free.

How did he know? 

He had _hope._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well? Does this make up for all the angst I've been feeding you? I hope it does. 
> 
> I do have a drawing of Mosaic, but I want to refine it a bit before I post it. I promise you'll like the finished product a lot more. 
> 
> So comment below, tell me what you thought! Toodles!


	5. Hidden People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Henry begins seeing things no one else can, including lost souls.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Blah Blah Blah prompt was from Master_Torch_Master, and secret tic-tac-toe was from thedemonsurfer. 
> 
> I hope this was what you hoped for.

Henry sighed as he listened to Susie ramble. Why was she so full of it? 

“I’m so close, so almost perfect!” she sighed contentedly. 

On the floor in front of him, he knew he had written the message, _Blah blah blah._ Taking out the darkened glass and completely ignoring Malice’s speech--he had practically memorized it at this point--he looked at Mosaic’s message. 

_**To be the perfect angel some sin must be done, huh? Pshaw! You didn’t use to talk as much. And you used to be so pretty too…** _

But it was the second one, the one on the window in front of the butcher gang member on the table that really stood out to Henry.

_**If only people could see what I see. Maybe they wouldn’t be so afraid.** _

Curious, Henry used the glass on Malice and was astonished. 

There, in white ink, was a sketch of Susie down to the letter. Her short curly blonde hair, her fair skin, her favorite dress, her blue eyes full of fear. Her arms were held out to the side by chains as tears streamed down her cheeks. 

“Susie…” Henry said, reaching out to her. 

She leaned forward hopefully, trying to reach him, but the divider slammed down in front of the window, and then she was gone. 

He stared at the window, processing that. After ten minutes, he sighed and left. 

He’d have to figure that one out later.

* * *

Henry sighed, laying on the cot in his cell. Allison and Tom, once again, were being cold toward him, no matter what he said to try and convince them he wasn’t a threat. They never listened. He always ended up locked in this cell. Why even bother trying? 

These thoughts used to scare him. Now they were just boring and solemn. How could you be afraid of facts, after all? 

His attention was snatched from his thoughts to a glimmer of white through the darkened looking glass. Mosaic was trying to talk to him. 

**_You okay?_ ** he asked.

“I’ve been better,” Henry admitted softly as to not draw the attention of his wardens. “Trapped in Allison and Tom’s safe house again. Probably for the millionth time. And I failed to save Boris yet again. So yeah, I’m not great.” 

**_Yeah, that sounds like it sucks. At least it’s not the real Boris, right?_ **

“That doesn’t matter. It was still a person I had to kill.” 

Mosaic was silent for a moment before writing, **_Yeah, I know how that feels. They didn’t deserve to die. You just didn’t have a choice._ **

He nodded. If anyone understood his pain, it was Mosaic. 

**_Do you know any games we could play? I’m… kind of bored,_ **Mosaic admitted. 

“I suppose we could do tic-tac-toe,” Henry mused. 

**_What’s that?_ **

Henry nearly surged up in surprise. “You… don’t know what tic-tac-toe is?” he asked, shocked. 

**_… No?_ **

“Oh, that is changing _right now_! Get ready to be educated!” Henry said as he pulled out his paintbrush. 

About ten minutes later, Allison looked into the cell to see Henry talking to himself excitedly, occasionally scolding some imaginary person while waving around a device with lights and a blacked-out window and painting on the wall with a brush with no ink. Unsure whether the animator was sane or not, Allison decided to leave him alone. 

Who knew what was wrong with him, the man made of unseeable ink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's all she wrote.  
> Sorry I haven't been active. I've been drawing character designs and roleplaying with my friends to develop personalities. I've gotten some pretty good results! (Forge the grandpa and Demonio the sweetheart and Rosa the fiery Hispanic to name a few--)  
> So submit your suggestions! I am here and want to write what you want to read!! ^^D  
> Toodles!  
> \- TIF

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I'll have more out for this soon! (Hopefully.)


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